One thing we do is to load a new dishwasher tablet immediately upon emptying the dishes.
Result:
If there’s a tablet: it’s dirty.
If there’s no tablet: it’s clean.
One thing we do is to load a new dishwasher tablet immediately upon emptying the dishes.
Result:
If there’s a tablet: it’s dirty.
If there’s no tablet: it’s clean.
The stable state of our dishwasher is dirty: clean only lasts the fleeting instant a person spots it and immediately empties it.
One word, teenagers.
That's a nice trick. What we do is use a reversible magnet that says "dirty" on one side and "clean" on the other
Or if you have an already incomplete set of scrabble tiles: attach magnets to the backs of the ones that spell "dirty" and "clean". Whichever isn't scrambled on the door is the state of the dishwasher.
Or simply don't rinse the dishes before you put them in[0]. I've never had trouble telling.
[0] Exceptions: uncooked eggs, yogurt, and for some reason, salsa? None of which ever come off for me if they sit for long before you run the dishwasher.
I've often wondered why the dishwasher vendors didn't put a label on the little flip open door so that it actually said, "dirty" on the outside, and "clean" on the inside.
That's a good one. One I tend to do is, once I know i will run the dishwasher overnight, I will set it to run with a delay. That way, even if I forget to put in the last few items, it's going to run and I will not run out of clean stuff. (My dishwasher is fairly slow, as it's a built-in one and can't pop open to dry).
I'm fully convinced that dishwashers are a hoax. Doing the dishes manually is far more efficient, both in water used, energy and time spent. Things to consider: time spent determining if the item is dishwasher proof, time spent playing dishwasher tetris, time spent filling and emptying, time pre-cleaning before putting things in the dishwasher, time spent re-washing after it turns out that the dishwasher did not clean your as well as it advertised on the box.
I can do the dishes after a family meal just as fast, and with better and more consistent results en less water, than when using the dishwasher.
> time spent determining if the item is dishwasher proof
It's done once per item. In my case I have just a few things I know are not dishwasher proof.
> time spent playing dishwasher tetris
Get a bigger dishwasher.
> time spent filling and emptying
The same time you'd spend putting things in the sink and taking them out after you've washed them.
> time pre-cleaning before putting things in the dishwasher
No need to that, unless you leave actual chunks of uneaten food on your plates.
> time spent re-washing after it turns out that the dishwasher did not clean your as well as it advertised on the box
Try powdered detergent. There are a few Technology Connections videos discussing dishwashers, including how capsules are inefficient - basically they're used up on the "pre-wash" cycle. There are a few other tricks to improve the efficiency of the dishwasher, too.
So you have a few things to do once and a few things to do always, which you'd do with hand washing anyway. Having a dishwasher is a game changer. If you're not happy with the results, don't give up just yet. Think of how to improve the process, because it's possible. At first I was also skeptical and disappointed in my (first) dishwasher.
When our old dishwasher gave up, I got a mid-range Bosch dishwasher. I never thought I’d catch feelings for an appliance, but this thing is awesome. Dishes come out squeaky clean and nearly dry just from the temps. Glasses are spotless. Third rack is very convenient as well.
I’m sure other modern dishwashers are also very good, but I’d buy the same again in a heartbeat.
I was honestly a little disappointed with my Bosch.
I had an old low end dishwasher that I had kept going up to a point, but the rack was after rusting to the point it broke.
Bought a mid range Bosch after reading so many glowing reviews and I find it does a terrible job at drying the dishes. They're clean, and the third rack is so much better than I had imagined it would be, but there's always still water on everything!
The old dishwasher had a vent on the front, when it was doing its drying you could see the steam coming out. The Bosch doesn't seem to have any vent... it heats up for a dry cycle, but if you don't catch it and open the door at the end the water vapor just recondenses.
I'm curious, is most of your dishware plastic? We have a Bosch and it does a great job drying everything except for the plastic stuff. I'm assuming the plastics cool faster and condense water on to them, but not 100% sure. Glass and ceramic/pottery always come out dry unless something got flipped over and pooled a bunch of water.
We use very little plastic, but I'm also admittedly incredibly picky over stuff being dry. It could be water dripping from the plastic racks above; nothing is truly wet, just enough that I'm not willing to put the dishes away without further drying.
I think plastic has a lower thermal conductivity/mass. Heat moves into the plastic more slowly and it just doesn't hold as much energy thus doesn't get hot enough to make the water evaporate.
Any modern dishwasher is very efficient on water (and on heating). That said, I don't have one myself. Dish washing time is thinking time or podcast time for me.
Someone should make a small pressure washing contraption like those for XXL restaurants.
Just to be clear, this is nonsense. Every dishwasher made for the past few decades at least will use less water than washing by hand.
[flagged]
> Wtf? I never once in my life have any issues [...] What a weird problem to have. I'll give you a pro tip [...]
Can you please make your substantive points thoughtfully? There's no need to snark or get personal.
If you wouldn't mind reviewing https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and taking the intended spirit of the site more to heart, we'd be grateful.
The issue comes when there are multiple people using the kitchen. Sometimes my wife runs the dishwasher when I'm not around, or vice versa. We usually rinse our dishes, so there is not always a lot of visible evidence.
The problem is when you have a dirty dish and assume that the dishwasher contents are dirty too (because usually we unload the dishwasher soon after it finishes). Then you put a dirty dish in, possibly making other dishes dirty. So you have to either hand-wash several dishes or re-wash the entire load.
Our dishwasher keeps its little screen on and blinking until you actually hit the on/off button, and we effectively use that as a cleanness indicator. We only turn it off after having cleaned out the dishwasher. So the off state always means dirty. On and full = clean, on and mostly empty = someone probably forgot to turn it off, easy to spot check.
I understand your confusion. If you clean off and rinse your dishes before you put them in the dishwasher, it can sometimes get confusing
I might quickly rinse my dishes to remove large food particles.
If you are cleaning your dishes so much before loading that you literally can't tell the difference between dishes that have been through the dishwasher and dishes that haven't, then just skip the dishwasher step. You're already done.
I don't get the logic of cleaning dishes BEFORE putting them in the dishwasher.
Not actually cleaning, just rinsing.
The logic is to prevent:
A lot of people don't know that dishwashers have filters that need to be cleaned regularly!And many of us grew up with older dishwashers that didn't work as well as newer ones.
All of that said, modern dishwashers actually monitor the water (clarity, turbidity?) to determine whether the dishes are sufficiently clean. If you rinse your dishes too well, the dishwasher will prematurely think it has accomplished its goal, and reduce time/temperature to end the cycle early. This is why manufacturers recommend against rinsing or pre-cleaning.
In my household, we have a pair of zealous canine precleaners, who do an excellent first-pass job. The dishwasher's only responsibility is to rinse and sterilize. :)
You will after you have to pull the dishwasher out, turn it upside down and partially disassemble it to clean the filter which is blocking the flow of water intended to rinse your dishes.
I think people don't want to clog their dishwasher with pieces of food. If I have a couple pieces of spaghetti, a part of a leaf and half a chickpea stuck on the plate, I would remove them with a paper towel. Not sure why anyone would rinse it afterwards, though.
That reminds me of people who clean before the maid comes. I've never had a maid, but I've read that people do the easiest things themselves so the maid, who is paid by the hour, has to do the harder things only.
I do it and recognize that the logic is flawed, but it's a habit and just looks and feels correct at this point.